Whew! We are in the dog days of summer, and the heat is gaining strength!

I don’t know about you, but I like to stay cool in the summer. I love being outside in the sun, but there is nothing better than coming into a cool house for some relief.

Since we moved into our new home, we have done very little with window coverings. Most of our windows are uncovered which allows the summer sun to come shining in, and with it comes extra warmth in our house.

To help keep our house cool and be more energy efficient, I decided to add some blinds and curtains to our windows.

For example, here is a window in the hallway leading into our master bedroom. When the sun is shining on this side of our house, you can feel the heat as you walk into our bedroom.

The installation is so easy. If you have never hung a shade before, the directions are very easy to follow.

First you have to install the metal bracket to the window frame.

Since our home is older, the windows are made a little weird, and I had to screw a piece of wood into the top of the window so I could screw the metal bracket to it.

You probably won’t have to do this.

Once I installed a wood piece on each side of the window, I screwed the metal brackets into the wood.

Next, I just slipped the woven shade up into each metal bracket and screwed it on tight with the lock nut provided.

That’s it! Soooo easy!

To dress up the window even more, and provide even more shelter from the sun, I added drapes to my windows.

You know what those drapes are made of, right? Those are drop cloths! Yep, you can get drop cloths from Lowe’s and make curtains from them! I bought the 6×9 drop cloths and just hemmed them a little at the bottom.

Now my window is ready for the summer heat. On those blistering days, I can lower my shad, close the drapes, and reduce the heat in my home.

If you missed this tutorial that I did for my fellow Kentuckian, Gail at My Repurposed Life, here it is!

I want to share with you how I made burlap tiebacks with interchangeable flowers that I made for my drop cloth curtains.

I got my inspiration for this project when I went shopping with Sarah, Thrifty Decor Chick, last month. We went to the Ballard Designs’ outlet store, and I almost bought these burlap curtain tiebacks that were on sale(picture below). One thing you need to know about me is I love burlap!

Then I came to my senses and said, “Why would I buy this, when I can make it!”

Oh, it’s the blogger in me.

:)

I decided I wanted to make a flower with a little more spring flare, so I chose to make a pink one. (Or we can call it “Honeysuckle” which is the color of the year.)

You have probably seen how to make one of these silk flowers before in blogland. So have I, but I had never tried to make one for myself.

Can you say, F-U-N!

I had a blast making these flowers. (I may have even created a new obsession for me!)

I bought this costume silk at Walmart. I got 1/4 of a yard, and it cost me only $.67!

First, I cut out five circles of descending sizes and traced them onto my pink silk fabric.

Then, I cut five slits on each circle to create the “petals”.

Carefully hold each circle of material over a small flame, (a tea light works best) and let the heat singe the edges.

Follow the two steps above with each circle and then layer them on top of each other to create the flower.

The last step is to get a needle and thread to attach the pearl button in the middle of the flower. Start from the back of the flower so the knot in the thread will not be seen.

Precious!

To make the burlap tieback, I just cut a piece of burlap 9 inches by 30 inches, folded it longways, and stitched up 2 of the three sides, leaving a hole at one end to pull the material through.

Then I ironed it flat…right side out, and stitched up the remaining side.

I also made two little strips of burlap to create loops on the inside of each side of my tieback, so I could attach the tieback to the wall with a hook.

The only thing left to do was attach the “hook & eyes” to the flowers and tiebacks.

And now I have a beautiful burlap curtain tieback!

I had so much fun making that flower, that I made two more flowers using a different technique that I will be sharing on my blog in the future.

I sewed a “hook” on the back of each of my flowers, so I can change them out whenever I want. How fun!!

I can think of a million different kinds of flowers to make. Maybe red ones around Christmas?

What do you think?

Of course, you could used this same concept with a different type material, if you do not like burlap.

I hung my burlap board on this wall. You can learn how to make one yourself by watching my first video tutorial. (Or buy one from my Etsy shop.)

I got the white basket from Goodwill last summer. It was $1.50 and an ugly green color. I spray painted it white. Easy.

The plate holder on the wall was my mom’s. I put a white plate in it for now. I am going to get a smaller white plate with maybe a monogram?

I love the little horse and carriage silhouette I found at Goodwill for 50 cents. I just fell in love with it. I am contemplating painting the frame black, what do you think? (Yes, it’s hung with a push pin right now…see it?)

Two last things I want to do in here:

1) Cute little chandelier.

2) A chair I can re-do. I would love to find an old ugly dining room chair at Goodwill and turn it into this….

of course in white…

Well, that’s it. I’m D-O-N-E.

Is there a room in your house that has given you decorating nightmares too?